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Stag Beetle
|upkeep_cost = |num_figures = |moves = |melee = * |defense = |resist = * |hits = |abilities = Fire Breath 5 * }} The Stag Beetle is a type of Normal Unit. This unit is unique to the Klackon Race, and can only be built in Klackon towns, for the Construction Cost of . The town must already contain both an Armorers' Guild and Stables for this to be possible. The Stag Beetle is a ferocious Melee Attacker, capable of chomping through armor with ease, and thus having a good chance of inflicting at least some damage to any target. Even before charging into Melee, the Stag Beetle also unleashes a powerful Fire Breath attack that can kill a few enemy figures before the fight even begins. Stag Beetles are also very well-armored, and can take a lot of damage before being destroyed. Coupled with their fast movement speed, these traits make the Stag Beetle a fearsome opponent on the battlefield. A Stag Beetle require an Upkeep Cost of and to maintain. Failure to pay these costs will result in the unit being disbanded automatically. Unit Properties Physical Description The Stag Beetle unit is comprised of a gigantic stag beetle ridden by a single Klackon. The beetle is a massive, fat-bodied insect with several horn-like prongs jutting out of its bulbous head (giving it its name). It is covered with a very thick black carapace which gives it ample protection from enemy weaponry. Despite its lumbering size and heavy construction, the Stag Beetle's six legs can carry it around at remarkable speeds. The beast's rider is a bipedal insect-like humanoid, also covered in an armor-like carapace, whose entire job is to direct the Stag Beetle towards its prey. The Stag Beetle is one of the few Normal Units. Attack Properties The Stag Beetle has the highest strength of any Normal Unit. Furthermore, when charging at an enemy it first delivers a Fire Breath attack that can cause some extra damage. Still, as a , the Stag Beetle's attack is actually stronger against well-armored Fantastic Creatures than it is against other Normal Units, but is still quite fearsome in all situations. The Stag Beetle's Melee Attack strength is . Because creation of a Stag Beetle normally requires an Armorers' Guild, the Stag Beetle will already have one free by default, thus increasing its attack score to . With no additional bonuses, the creature causes an average of per attack - high enough to almost guarantee damage to any target. Furthermore, when the Stag Beetle makes a voluntary Melee Attack against an enemy unit, it first executes a Fire Breath attack with a default strength of . Again, since Stag Beetles will usually start with one free Experience Level, this strength is increased to 6 - for an average damage output of . Any enemy that actually gets killed by this attack cannot deliver any Melee Damage back at the Stag Beetle. When fighting enemy low-tier Normal Units, expect at least one enemy to be killed off this way. All told, this amounts to quite a hefty damage output. However, remember that the Stag Beetle is only a single , so its attack is overall roughly comparable to that of a mid-tier Normal Unit. Its primary advantage is that it can reliably hurt other well-armored , like Heroes and some Fantastic Creatures, but is slightly less useful against . Note that the Stag Beetle may not use its Fire Breath when Counter Attacking. Also note that opponents with Magic Immunity or Fire Immunity will shrug off any damage from this attack. The Fire Breath ability also allows a Stag Beetle to initiate Melee Attacks against enemy Flying units. Defense Properties The Stag Beetle enjoys the protection of very heavy armor. It has a Defense score of , which will block about from any attack. This is comparable to some higher-level Fantastic Units' defense scores, and means that opponents will be hard-pressed to get any damage through. Ranged Attacks, in particular, will usually have difficulty hurting a Stag Beetle. The Stag Beetle also has a very respectable pool of Hit Points to fall back on, with a total of when fully-healed. This means that even damage that does get through the unit's armor will need to slowly chip away at the Hit Points in order to kill the Stag Beetle. These factors put the Stag Beetle very high on the survivability scale. While it is not as hard to kill as some of the high-tier Fantastic Units, it is still more than a match for all but the best Normal Units. For the purpose of defending against Curses and other combat maledictions, the Stag Beetle has a Resistance score of . This provides some protection against curses and Special Attacks, but relative to the Stag Beetle's other traits, Resistance is definitely a weak point. Note that Stag Beetles tend to be produced with an extra Experience Level, and so will actually start off with - and will eventually become immune to a few curses as this score crosses with further Experience levels. Other Properties Stag Beetles are faster than most Normal Units, moving at . This is crucial if they wish to utilize their Fire Breath, and allows the Beetle to chase down its targets (especially enemy Heroes and Ranged Attack units). The unit has no other movement-related properties. Basic Strategy Stag Beetles form the offensive arm of the Klackon military. They are designed to kill enemy units with brute force - particularly heavily-armored . In a "classic" battle involving Klackons, the infantry is tasked with engaging the enemy and holding him in place, using their high Defense score to survive for a few turns. While they do so, the Stag Beetle will rush towards the most dangerous enemy unit on the battlefield and relentlessly attack it until it dies. Again, the Stag Beetle's high Melee Attack will easily go through armor, and so is quite useful for killing enemy Heroes and some lower-tier Fantastic Units. The Beetle's speed allows it to chase down its prey effectively. If possible, try to always initiate Melee combat yourself, rather than allowing the enemy to attack the Stag Beetle. This allows the Beetle to make its Fire Breath attack, possibly killing off enemy figures before they can retaliate (and thus reducing damage to the Stag Beetle during the enemy's Counter Attack). This is more important when fighting enemy Normal Units, but is helpful in most cases anyway. Do not let the Stag Beetle get surrounded; withdraw and look for another opportunity to charge at the enemy instead. Stag Beetles are well-armored and have plenty of Hit Points, but don't expect them to be invincible. They can charge up to a Ranged Attack unit quite safely, but may be killed in battle with a strong enemy Fantastic Unit or even some high-level Normal Units. Work together with the Klackon infantry to help distribute damage evenly between your units. Stag Beetles become available surprisingly early in the game, and by the time they do, it should be easy to produce large numbers of them quickly. If you can do so early on, there will be little to stop your expanding empire until such time that powerful enemy opponents begin to appear. Make good use of this - expand rapidly! That is the Klackon way! Ability Overview Fire Breath 5 * Whenever this unit makes a Melee Attack against an enemy target, it also delivers a Fire Damage Breath Attack with a strength of per . * As a Breath Attack, this damage is delivered before the enemy gets the chance to retaliate. Any in the target unit that are killed by the attack do not get to deliver any Melee Damage. * This Breath Attack does not occur when the unit is Counter Attacking against an enemy assailant. * This effect does nothing against targets possessing the Magic Immunity or Fire Immunity abilities. Experience Table The following table illustrates how Stag Beetles improve as they gain Experience. Any properties that are not listed here do not improve with Experience in any way. * To achieve this level, either the Warlord Retort or the Crusade spell must be in play. ** To achieve this level, both the Warlord Retort and the Crusade spell must be in play simultaneously. Average Damage Output The table below details the average amount of damage that a Stag Beetle will deliver with each type of attack, based on . It can be used in comparison to the target's Defense rating to figure out the chance of hurting that target. Acquisition Stag Beetles are unique to the Klackon faction, and thus may be produced in any Klackon Town. A town must contain both the Armorers' Guild and the Stables to be able to produce Stag Beetles. Should a town lose either its Armorers' Guild or Stables, it can no longer produce Stag Beetles until replacement structures are built. Note that this building requirement means that Stag Beetles produced in towns will always start as "Regular" troops (one free Experience Level), giving them a small but significant bonus above the default unit strength. The Construction Cost of this unit is . Stag Beetles may appear for hire as Mercenaries. They may already have some Experience on being hired, and several units may be hired simultaneously. Hiring these units requires a certain cost in that depends on many different factors. Stag Beetle Mercenaries have the same Upkeep Cost as a normally-constructed unit. Category:Units Category:Normal Units Category:Klackons